Do I need to get a life (online)?

Do I need to get a life (online)?

(Note: this is a follow up to an earlier post, from Oct. 8, and has already appeared at http://www.top10costarica.com/ on Oct. 29, in a slightly different form).

When they discover the center of the universe, a lot of people will be disappointed to discover they are not it. - Bernard Bailey

I know that I have touched on this before, but since this is such a constant and recurring thing on various online forums about Costa Rica, I just can't leave it alone. I guess this is just so annoying to me, that I can't let it go. All of which leads us to yet another rhetorical question: Why do people jump onto a forum about CR, having never so much as visited the place, and announce to all and sundry that they are "READY TO MAKE THE MOVE," (have to put that in all caps, 'cause they always start out so enthusiastic), and then they proceed to ask a dozen open questions that were likely answered (many times) before all over the very forum on which they have posted their announcement?

One of the most irksome aspects of these posts is that they proceed to tell you certain pertinent facts about themselves, then list their personal requirements (prerequisites for happiness?) for their own space, and then demand (by implication) that the forum members now satisfy those demands. As in, "I have done such and so for x number of years, and am tired of that, so now I want to (fill in the blank). I live in a wet/dry, hot/cold, arid/temperate, good/bad, climate, and also have hay fever/asthma/emphysema/psoriasis/creeping crotch disease, and really need to be in a (fill in another blank) environment." Or, "I googled maps, and like the looks of the terrain around such and such a place, so who can tell me all about that place? Will I be happy there?"

Here's another I just love: "I don't speak Spanish, but I plan to learn" (as if one can just go out and tackle a new language after a lifetime of ignoring the fact that the world extends beyond the borders of their own ethnocentrism) "just as soon as I can. I already bought (another blank for you, naming the software program they have been conned into purchasing, guaranteed to teach them Spanish in just a few short weeks), and I have already finished the first two lessons."

And, you should already be aware that I just cringe when I read: "I have/I think I have _________disease/condition/syndrome/symptoms." Or, without mentioning their perceived medical condition, they will just start out with: "Please tell me the name of a good specialist in [blank area of medicine] who speaks English/is in the Caja/will let me see him in his private office (so I don't have to associate with all those Ticos/Nicas/Latins), and who will explain everything to me in excruciating detail, and answer all my questions, give me all of his/her time, and do all this for next to nothing." And, let's not forget, this specialist must be within a ten minute drive of their CV location, with ample free and guarded parking, English speaking car guards, and also close - in proximity - to American style shopping.

And, then you encounter a couple of variations of another type. They have either lived in CR already for anywhere from 2 months, to ten years, and now they want to be legal residents, or they have blindly and blithely decided to seek legal residence, without ever having visited the place. These two categories do have one thing in common, however. They haven't bothered to look up obvious things like, say Costa Rica, immigration, government websites, Costa Rica Embassy in Washington, D. C., their local phone book for a Costa Rican Consulate, or any of the clearly marked links at whatever forum they have come to. This category is further characterized as all of a sudden being in this tremendous hurry to get this whole thing done overnight, as in this is extremely urgent.

A very interesting variation on a theme is the gushing idiot who suddenly appears on a forum, posts something (more questions, but soon, his personal opinions start to creep into his posts, as he becomes an active member of the forum), and then, for days or even weeks, they are posting more and more and more, many times a day, virtually dominating the forum. You can easily visualize these freaks sitting in a little, cluttered room somewhere, frantically trying to get a life, however vicariously through their new internet/forum persona. They will announce – in all caps – that they are ready to make that move, and even describe in excruciating detail how they are progressing toward their goal of pulling up stakes, packing everything of importance, pulling the kids out of school (they frequently voice their intention to home school at this point), having the wife quit her job, making reservations (or, worse, asking the ageless question: "Should we drive to Costa Rica, with six kids, four dogs, three cats, and the cockatoo?"). The day approaches that they have announced as their departure from the old, dull, boring life dominated by the always interfering U. S. Gov't, and their arrival in paradise where they just know everything is going to be wonderful………..guess what? All of a sudden they disappear from whatever forum they have dominated for the last many months! Never a further peep out of them! How strange……..and, yet, I remember very clearly one such situation where I dared to point out the many inconsistencies in posts from one such poseur, over a period of some months. The end result was that I got jumped on for not being accepting of whatever crap he posted at face value, and – of course – for not encouraging the new kids on the block, and so on.

You see, I spent some years working as an investigator, and more than thirty years as a Nurse. If I learned one thing in those years, it is that, as one of my favorite TV characters (Dr. Greg House) is fond of saying, "Everybody lies." Everyone! No exceptions! And, yes, that includes me! I learned in my work to read people, and to look between the lines of what people write and behind the words that people say. If they reveal a certain thing about themselves, it usually implies something else, so, by asking pointed questions, one can actually pull a close approximation of the truth out of them. However, the questions you have to ask them usually make them uncomfortable, and they may well decide to decline to answer or continue to lie. What happens with these folks on online forums is that they usually just ignore my questions, and sit back and let the other forum members jump on me because I am not being sensitive enough.

I guess what gets me in trouble with all the feel good, PC, kinder, gentler folks is that I presume the negative about newcomers whose posts lack consistency, where they insist that one should assume only the positive, as in these folks are assumed to have good intentions. We all know what happens when we assume anything, and I think that I have come out being burned fewer times with my attitude than have the goodness and light crowd. Besides, let's not forget that Costa Rica has for a very long time been known as the land of the wanted and the unwanted, and that is no less true today than it was thirty or fifty years ago.

At any rate, there is now a forum about Costa Rica, where one can learn about living – legally - in the country from existing forum members. Newcomers should not expect to be mollycoddled, "nurtured," or in any way catered to. Instead, they will be encouraged to do some basic research in locations that provide real information, and real efforts will be made to share information for those seeking the path to legal residence in Costa Rica. It is called (coincidentally) CRRealists, and can be found at: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/CRRealists/. If you have any interest in Costa Rica as a possible place to live, take a look, and/or join in.

Breaking (beer) News for the Lake Arenal area.

"Without question, the greatest invention in the history of mankind is beer. Oh, I grant you that the wheel was also a fine invention, but the wheel does not go nearly as well with pizza." - - Dave Barry

(This may well impact all the Lake Arenal area, over to La Fortuna, on the east, and down to Los Angeles, to the west).

George Lin (aka Big Beluga), from Maryland, is the official Brew Master at Hotel Tilawa. He has told me just today that, after literally years of preparation, and seemingly endless paperwork, the first order of hops have arrived on site, and the first order of Malt is in country, expected to arrived at the hotel later today. He is planning to start out by brewing mostly Ales, and he will do his first run (three barrel capacity per run) within days. He said that they hope to be ready for paying customers in about two weeks. He will start with a blend of specially modified hops for a fruity, citrus-like flavor, and then will try a stout. I will try to post more as things develop, and will try to provide a review when there are products to talk about.

Is There A Doctor In The House?

To be stupid, selfish, and have good health are three requirements for happiness, though if stupidity is lacking, all is lost. - Gustave Flaubert (1821 - 1880)

A couple of the more tolerant/lame/PC/weak Costa Rica forums have a recurring theme, if you will allow me to label this particular phenomenon as such. That theme has to do with requests for referrals to various English speaking medical specialists. Now, as an experienced RN, I have always recommended that everyone should have a primary (as in family) doc. Let him or her decide if you have a medical need for a specialist consultation or not, and if you do need such a thing, then let your family doctor choose for you! How could you think to ask perfect strangers (the members of an online forum, a goodly portion of whom are just as phony as a three dollar bill), to offer you suggestions in an area that should be so personal, and important?! Worse, how dare you (or I) presume to know if or when we need to see a specialist?

Now, some folks will try to tell us that they have this need because they were under the care of such a specialist back in the states, so they want this for ongoing care. But, that's drivel. How did they come under the care of that specialist in the first place, if not through a referral from another doc? And, if they left the care of their primary physician simply because they gained a medical diagnosis of a heart condition, or diabetes, or whatever, then who the hell told them to do such a foolish thing (stop seeing their primary physician)? You can bet it was NOT that specialist, nor was it their family doc! You still need that primary physician!

Beyond that, if you are or were under the care of a specialist in the states, before you make the decision to move to a foreign country (actually, this should apply even if you're moving across town, or to another town or state), you should discuss the move with your specialist prior to making that decision. Ask them questions about what their recommendation is for your ongoing care. Ask them to make the actual referral for you! You might be surprised at the international contacts good physicians have. Ask them for a copy of your patient records to bring with you to provide to your new physician. Don't worry if they're in English, and you're moving to a place where Spanish is the preferred language. You'd be surprised how many English language Medical Texts are studied in foreign countries, simply because there is not enough market for publishers to pay for translations.

When talking about ongoing health care, the first step is always to choose your primary physician. If you are in the Caja, then let the doc you see at the clinic decide whether or not you need to see a specialist! Then, follow his instructions, and give the system a chance to work. Why complicate your life? If you do not speak adequate Spanish, then for cryin' out loud – LEARN! Or, take someone with you to translate (this is a courteous thing for you to do not just for yourself, but for the clinic staff) when you go to the clinic! And, please, please, please! Stop whining about they don't speak English! That is not their language, and this is – after all - their country! It is upon us to adjust to their ways, not up to them to accommodate our shortcomings.

Now, if you don't like the specialist they send you to see, go back and tell them so. But, remember, if you're part of the Caja, this will do you no good, because there are only so many specialists available to Caja patients, under the best of circumstances. So, once in a while, suck it up! Take it like a man (or woman). If all else fails, go ahead on back to the states, and find somebody there who speaks your language (like a doc from Pakistan, or India), and pay through the nose, if you can afford it.

But, whatever you do, please don't ask me – or any other stranger – to suggest or recommend any kind of specialist for you. I know the big advantage of doing something in this manner (asking strangers to guide your life) may well offer you the opportunity to evade your own responsibility for your actions, but that is just plain stupid. Oh, yeah, "I died because that stranger over there on the forum sent me to the wrong doctor"! Oh, no……I won't be part of that.

The Blame Game

"All blame is a waste of time. No matter how much fault you find with another, and regardless of how much you blame him, it will not change you. The only thing blame does is to keep the focus off you when you are looking for external reasons to explain your unhappiness or frustration. You may succeed in making another feel guilty about something by blaming him, but you won't succeed in changing whatever it is about you that is making you unhappy". - Wayne Dyer

    If you have been paying attention, you should know that one writer I admire is a man named Fred Reed (there should be a link to his site here somewhere). Fred wrote for more than one nationally prominent publication in the U. S. before retiring to Mexico, where he still writes about whatever he wants to write. He is my ideal of a curmudgeon, and he could probably say all of the following much better than I, but he's got other fish to fry, so I'm going to tackle this one, with a salute to Fred, nonetheless. I should also note that the below has already appeared just this date on the website, Top 10 Costa Rica (http://www.top10costarica.com/), in a different form.

Some of you may remember an incident last year, near Playa Flamingo, when a 14 year old American girl, on vacation with her family, went over a cliff on an ATV, and died, tragically. Now, it should be noted that – as far as we know - this family had no previous history of ATV use in the U.S. (like, maybe driving lessons, or safety instructions). We also know that the family had already been in Costa Rica long enough to have found their way to whatever hotel they were using, and long enough to have booked a tour that involved riding ATV's on bad and/or nonexistent roads (hell, these were ATV's), and certainly long enough to be aware that there are no controls or regulations in place to help ensure user safety. Yet they felt it was OK to allow their 14 year old daughter, who had never ridden on an ATV, let alone driven one, to participate in this wild ride through the jungle. They even had two 6 year olds and one 7 year old along.

    As I said, this was a tragic event. But, the tragedy has been compounded, first because the mother of this child immediately was quoted in the news indicating that she was seeking someone else (other than herself) to blame for this occurrence. The above news report tells how she is still actively seeking others to blame for what (imho) was her responsibility – the safety of her child. ABC News, in the person of "Brian Ross Investigates" carried an interview with her this last Friday, and a new AMCostaRica report describes all of this for us (see page three of today's edition online).

    Personally, I am so tired of this American attitude of never accepting responsibility for our own actions. When did this start? Where did it come from? Why do we put up with it? And, what is wrong with our so-called media (ABC News, I'm talking to you) that they would dignify such goings-on by giving these people a platform?

I'm sorry for her loss, but it is NOT my government's responsibility to intercede for her with Costa Rica, nor is it the U. S. government's place to dictate to another country in situations such as this. Worse, why is it acceptable to use information about an incident in Costa Rica in a blatant attempt to influence U. S. lawmakers, and the citizenry in general, regarding ATV safety. For this lady's information, ATV use has been common for many, many years, and many changes have already been made industry wide, on an international basis, in an effort to make these things as safe as they can be. What's more, it is common knowledge that inexperienced persons should not operate any kind of machinery, let alone be allowed to drive such a machine. And, ultimately, it is the parent's responsibility to provide the necessary training, whether it be driver education, safety course, or whatever. Or, in the absence of such training and preparation, it is the parent's responsibility to deny the child the opportunity to participate in such an event as a wild jungle ride, in a foreign country, over unfamiliar terrain.

That means it is not mine. Not yours. Not the government's (why do people keep forgetting who the government really is?). Not the Tour Operator's. Not ABC News. And, definitely, not Brian Ross'!

Now, let me be blunt, and say this: Lady, you really need to get over it! Sure, you can reach out and try to teach people (maybe people like you were; who didn't want to be bothered, didn't see the need, didn't know better, whatever) to do better. But, do it from a position where you acknowledge your own part in this event, and accept your own responsibility for it. I bet you would be much more effective speaking as a mother who may have had a momentary lapse of judgment, than you do as a shrill voice of blame, one that sounds like they are desperately seeking to avoid responsibility.

About ATV's: Granted, these were first introduced as recreational vehicles, for fun, or sport. But, what they are, if we are going to be honest about them, is best left for experienced users, and their ideal role should be for them to be used as working tools. They are great for hauling loads on the farm or ranch, and for getting around in rugged terrain, while performing some sort of work. They are not practical for fun, because they are, quite frankly, too powerful, and it is too easy for someone lacking experience (and common sense) to lose control of them, and flip them, or drive them – at great speed – right off the road (like over a cliff). So, how could this mother, who called herself (last year, on AMCostaRica) "an extremely responsible mother," also say that "….had I thought there was serious risk of danger I would have never permitted my family to participate in this tour"? Does she wish us to believe that she was so completely unaware of the very existence of ATV's to the point that she did not know that they are not for beginners?

She went on to say that "We were never warned of any dangers, never signed a waiver, and the owner of the tour knew we had two 6 year olds and a 7 year old with us." And, I say, so what? Where did she think she was? The owner of the tour knew she had three kids along who were younger than the 14 year old? So what? Didn't she know that, too? Does she mean to tell us that she also allowed those three younger kids to participate in this tour? What the hell was she thinking? And, why is it now everybody else's fault?

Seems to me that if she was not asked to sign a waiver, nor was she warned of any possible danger, that should only have served to remind her to be extra vigilant of the welfare of her kids.  You want to take this tour as a family?  Then, remind the kids to stick together, and make sure you bring up the rear, just as you would when walking through the zoo, or strolling in the park, as a group.  How else do we watch over our kids, if not from behind.  If one kid lags, then we should be lagging, too, right?  Isn't this what she was already doing, since she was escorting an apparently large family on a trip to a foreign country?  Now, because she had a lapse of judgment, or whatever reason, she gets to spend the rest of her life bad mouthing Costa Rica, and everyone associated with her trip.  And, her other children are likely scarred for life by the event.  This whole thing stinks, and blaming anyone is not helping one iota.

Costa Rican Suburu owners: A new online forum

Hey!  A new forum in Spanish, BUT, you can also write in English if you like.  It is a site for the owner of the older Subaru who may be looking for parts, service, and other things related to older Subarus in Costa Rica.  As a Subaru owner for 31 years, the forum owner has seen the need for a central place where one can look for parts, put up photos, ask questions, etc. related to Subaru.  They don't plan on meetings, races, picnics, show offs (except for the photo section)... just a place for ideas and help.  If you are a lucky older Subaru owner or even a wannabe... Welcome, sign up and see what can be accomplished:
http://es.groups.yahoo.com/group/subarusviejasdecostarica/

A brief and personal history of ICE’s Kolbi 3g Internet service.

(Editor's Note:  A slightly different version of this article was originally published at http://www.top10costarica.com/)

Never confuse movement with action.   Ernest Hemingway

          When I was first told of the availability of the then new Huawei 3g Data Card/Modem from ICE to be used with their 3g network for internet only service, I did not hesitate to sign up (this was just before Christmas last year).  It was explained by ICE, and understood by me, that this service was new, so there were still bugs to be worked out.  That was even the reason given for a low introductory price.  It was understood that the speed would be better within a month or so of initial release, and that the cost and speed would be go up together.

          The increase in speed did come, but much later (not until late April) than our local office had verbally told me, and it was not automatic.  I had to go in person to their office, after I learned that a higher speed was available, and formally request the higher speed, at which time, I began to pay a higher price as well.

          Since its inception, the connection speed has very rarely, and only for short periods of time, ever reached the originally promised 1.0Mbps speed.  Worse, the upload speed is still atrociously slow, and the overall connection is too dirty (too much ‘jitter,’ for one thing) to allow one to do some of the tasks normally expected over the internet (like, especially VOIP phone calls).  The operative word here might well be inconsistency, because the signal has never been stable.  Nor am I the only one with a problem.  Recently, there was a letter to the Editor of AMCostaRica.com online newzzine, that was seconded by yours truly and another user down in the Osa area.

          Last week, after talking with some neighbors about how much worse things had been for the two weeks prior, I went to the local ICE office, where I spoke with Yurbin, a very nice young man (one of two front desk persons), to inquire about why the connection has been so bad of late.  He admitted to me that there was a problem with the Huawei equipment located in the local tower.  He stated that ICE’s technicians had already done all they could, and now they (ICE) were waiting for representatives from Huawei to come to town to address whatever problems are extant.  He didn’t know, but thought someone might come within the next two weeks.  He was unable to address the question of a possible refund to those of us who pay for the top tier of service, and who are not receiving same.  He did offer (and, this was not the first time that an ICE representative has made this offer to me) to change my account to the lower tier, lower cost, but did not understand why this is not acceptable to me (I can’t seem to make them understand that it is inconvenient to have to make two trips to their office to affect what should be done over the phone.  Nor can they understand the concept that maybe a company that gave a damn about its customers might voluntarily do something like this).

          Then, two days ago, I resolved to make yet another attempt to reach ICE’s tech support by phone (193 didn’t work, but the live person there was able to refer me to 115, where I pretty much got lost in the system of pre-recorded and very much disembodied voices that kept giving me teasing options).  I should note that I had already tried this once or twice before.  On one occasion, a techie was able to get me back online, by guiding me to change some settings in my software.  Then, the day before yesterday, I finally cut a techie off, and hung up after becoming frustrated by her attempts to have me do what had already been done, and her inability to address my specific concerns.  Those specific concerns had and have to do with the fact that the service has been even worse than usual over the last three weeks, and a (to ICE) strange desire to want to actually receive that which I am paying.

          Yesterday, while waiting online for yet another techie, I idly connected my Zoom Modem to the PC, and went online.  All of a sudden, after weeks and months of it not being there, I had a fast, steady connection!  A full 1Mbps per the most stringent speed test that I know, and that test gave me - for the first time in months of testing - three green lights signaling that I actually had a good enough connection to allow a VOIP call (not necessarily good enough for a video conference, you understand, but Skype should have worked).  I was amazed.  I tried out my Slingplayer program, and it was actually working for the first time in months, with a good download speed approaching 500Mbps (this is the minimum speed that Slingmedia software and equipment needs in order to function.  And, this is a phenomenon of the slingmedia concept:  Even when the internet speed test hits as high as 1Mbps, the slingplayer software drops that down to half, or less, thus rendering the software useless).  But, alas, this good connection was all too short lived.  It fell back to the normal, slow, unstable connection that I have come to hate these last months, within about fifteen minutes.

So, yesterday, while in town on other business, I made it a point to go yet again to the local office of ICE.  On this occasion I actually spoke to the local Gerente, Mario Murillo.  I asked him if maybe somebody had been working on the tower the day before, maybe during that brief time that I experienced the short lived good connection.  He did not know, but he did acknowledge that there is some sort of problem with the Huawei equipment in the local tower, and ICE is expecting someone to come to town within the next week to address whatever issue is present.  He also made me that same (in my opinion) empty offer to change my plan to the lower speed, lower cost tier.

So, here we are.  Living in paradise, far from the madding crowd, as it were, but also far from so many things that I used to take for granted.  Of course, in this case I am only crying over the lack of a high speed internet connection.  I think the frustration is that I made the mistake of believing the ICE was actually offering me a real alternative to dial up (OK.  It is a real alternative, but it is still too slow to be properly called broadband).  Who knows if or when they will get whatever is wrong fixed, but I figure they have come a long way to finally admit that there is an equipment problem.  But, you probably did notice that, true to ICE form, they are still not accepting the responsibility for any failure, since they are blaming Huawei’s equipment.

Meanwhile, a new problem has arisen.  For the last few mornings, when I first turn on my PC, I now notice that my internet connection is gone (I have a router that is on 24/7, mostly from habit, but actually for my Skype phone, which I can rarely use, anyway).  So, as soon as the PC boots, I have to reset the router each and every day.  Yet another cause for frustration..........And, so the continuing saga of my disillusionment with ICE and this Kolbi system goes on.  Stay tuned.

Come join a New Online Forum About Costa Rica

I would like to invite any and all interested to join a new online forum about, for, and involving living in Costa Rica as a non-citizen, but legal resident.  This group is being formed after years of frustration with existing forums that are too heavily moderated, politically slanted, exclusive of many who can be of help, and generally too much full of gossip, innuendo, and rumor.  This forum will exist for a free and open exchange of ideas and information about how to get here, what to do after getting here, and so forth.  Take a peek.

Group home page: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/CRRealists

Group email address: CRRealists@yahoogroups.com

John